Tire Group International has announced its appointment of Osvaldo Marchante as vice-president of business development. Marchante has more than 25 years of extensive automotive and on/off highway industry experience with multinationals. He was most recently the president and CEO of Detroit Diesel-Allison (Florida), overseeing eight full service facilities and a network of multiple dealers, customers and OEM’s throughout Florida.
As of September 1, prices for Michelin North America’s entire OTR tyre line-up in the US, Canada and Mexico will rise. Increases will range between five and 13 per cent, MNA reports. This is the third price increase MNA has implemented for its OTR tyres this year; previous increases were up to 7 and 8 per cent, respectively.
In addition to the appointment of Rafael Navarro III to the role of vice-president, Communications and Media Relations, as reported on tyrepress.com earlier today, Pirelli has announced to further promotions in its North American operations.
Smithers Rapra has appointed Rikki Lamba as vice president of North American operations. Prior to Smithers, Dr. Lamba worked for Excel Polymers LLC, a global supplier of custom elastomeric solutions with operations in the US, Mexico, the UK and China. Prior to Excel he was vice president of technology at Columbian Chemicals.
Reporting on the financial year that ended March 31, 2011, JK Tyre & Industries Ltd. notes that the selling price increases implemented for its products were unable to keep pace with raw material cost increases, and this adversely impacted upon the company’s margins. Therefore, despite a 30.9 per cent increase in net sales to Rs 59,454.4 million (£806.9 million), the Indian tyre maker’s before profit tax dropped 64.2 per cent to Rs 1,119.6 million (£15.2 million) and net profit declined 71.5 per cent to Rs 625.5 million (£8.5 million). Revenue from the company’s operations in India accounted for 80.0 per cent of total net sales and the former Tornel facilities in Mexico the remaining Rs 11,343.5 million.
Speaking to India’s Business Standard newspaper, JK Tyre & Industries vice-chairman and managing director Raghupati Singhania has shared that the tyre maker is looking at expanding its international presence by 15 to 20 per cent every year. Currently JK Tyre sells Rs 8 billion (£108.5 million) worth of goods outside of India, some 44 per cent of which is produced at international sites. These overseas facilities include the Tornel plant in Mexico, which the Indian manufacturer acquired in 2008, and partner factories in China, Vietnam and Sri Lanka.
ATS Euromaster is helping to construct the largest single tyre wall in the world after supplying a truckload of scrap tyres to an exciting rural development project in Newstead, Nottinghamshire. The tyres are being used to form the building blocks of a new visitor centre and café, after Newstead became one of six villages to receive a grant from the Village SOS project, sponsored by Big Lottery Fund and the BBC.
BSM Technologies Inc., a leading provider of remote monitoring, fleet management, fleet diagnostics and automated vehicle security systems, and EMS Global Tracking, part of the Global Resource Management business of EMS Technologies, Inc. said (on 3 April) that they are extending their existing reseller agreement to distribute BSM’s SecTrack products and services to Latin America.
Michelin North America’s newly-released 2011 fact sheet reports regional sales of US$8.2 billion for the tyre maker in 2010, a 17.1 per cent increase on a year earlier and 34 per cent of Michelin’s total global sales. Last year Michelin employed approximately 21,400 people in the North America region, some 500 more than in 2009. This small growth in employee numbers occurred in the US and Canada, with the employee head count dipping slightly in Mexico.
On January 1, Cooper Tire & Rubber increased its level of ownership in its affiliated Mexican operation from 38 to 58 per cent. The tyre maker states this increased ownership in Corporacion de Occidente SA de CV. has been made as part of its long-term strategy to produce high quality yet cost competitive products. As a result of this transaction, the Mexican entity will be fully consolidated in the company’s financial results for this year.
Continental AG’s automotive components plant in Huntsville, Alabama is preparing to close its doors for the last time. Production ended on November 11 and now only some 250 employees remain at the plant – this is expected to drop to around 100 in January. Continental has already announced Huntsville’s lost production will be absorbed by other plants in the US and Mexico.
Bridgestone Americas, Inc. (BSAM) has announced two senior personnel changes: Stephen Brooks, formerly president, US, Canada and Monterrey Manufacturing Group (BAMG), has been appointed to the newly created position of chief information officer, BSAM. Barrett “Barry” Owens, formerly executive director, Process Engineering Development, will assume Brooks’ responsibilities and has been promoted to the position of vice president, Manufacturing, BAMG.
International motorcycle traveller Sam Manicom launched his latest book at The Ace Café on the North Circular Road, Stonebridge on 18 September, with his Gripster tyre supplier Avon in attendance. Manicom has used Avon rubber for the majority of the 250,000 miles covered during his time on the road around the world, so it was fitting that the tyre-manufacturer should attend his book launch with a show vehicle and a series of tyre displays. Avon representatives were also on hand to discuss the entire Avon range, though the focus was undoubtedly on Avon’s adventure bike tyres – the Gripster and Distanzia.
We’re proud to be British at Tyres & Accessories and we eagerly follow any automotive industry developments originating in our island home. Therefore we were thrilled to hear that GENeco, a company owned by Wessex Water, has successfully trialled a Volkswagen Beetle powered by a fuel guaranteed to never run out or cause major headaches in the Gulf of Mexico.
As of August 1, Michelin North America will increase prices on a number of tyre ranges, a measure it says is being implemented as a result of rising raw material prices. Michelin brand replacement market agricultural tyres will on average coast 3.5 per cent more in the US and Canada, while prices for Michelin brand replacement market earthmover tyres sold in the US and Mexico will increase by three per cent.
If you would like the latest news from the Chinese tyre industry in Chinese, visit our partner site TyrepressChina.com. Or click below to continue on Tyrepress.
